Advice on WT fender flares...what would YOU do?

[Chuck Brown]

Before I get too far, I'll just say that this isnt another Keep vs Cut WT fender flare discussion!

Heres the deal boys, Ive got a pair of rear WT fender flares for the 77 Chief from a good hearted member here a while back and Ive been putting off the sheet metal surgery in order to focus my attention on other things.

Well, both of my rear fender flares have rot on the lower ends, which were generously filled with body filler by the P.O.

Now, Im just talking about the lower 6-7" of each flare, and knowing that I'll have to deal with the fact that theyre constructed of an inner/outer assembly, is it a better idea to wrestle with pulling the entire flare on each side and welding in the replacement flares OR simply trim off the damaged lower sections and splice in donor sections from the flares I've set on the side.

Im a decent welder in my own right, although admittedly sheet metal is not my strong suit, as I mostly handle heavier stock and structural steel. Ive also done sub-frame and inner panel assembly on older Mustangs, which is mostly a lot of spot/plug welds.

The problem is, Ive been waiting for months to send it out for paint, but NONE of the local body shops want to deal with any fab work and prefer the easy in-out prime and paint jobs. Although Ive been on a couple of different waiting lists for nearly 5-6 months now, if I handle the repair myself I have no doubt it will move me up in the priority chain.

Heres a couple of older shots of the rough areas on my fender flares:




As always, all your thoughts and experiences are greatly welcomed...

Chuck Brown

[dajeeps]

seems like you got things planed well.i would go ahead and repair myself .leaveig them on would be easier for repair.if you know how to weld should be no problem.
i had no experiance at all when i built my cab.

[Chuck Brown]

Originally Posted by dajeeps

seems like you got things planed well.i would go ahead and repair myself .leaveig them on would be easier for repair.if you know how to weld should be no problem.
i had no experiance at all when i built my cab.

Deajeeps, would you A.) Patch using the donors or B.) Replace entirely?

Chuck Brown

[newtojeeps]

I would do some preliminary surgery to see how bad it is inside, then make the decision to patch or replace. You are seeing what is obvious at this point.

[dajeeps]

newtojeeps has a good point.it all depends on how bad it is.cutting it out completly is a lot of work.i personally would use doners and patch it.
i have a set comming and one is as bad as yours,so my project will be forming the bottom out of sheet metal.
may i suggest after your done put on some kind of bedliner on it after your done.

[Lindel]

A big part of the problem is that it'll just happen again unless you do something to prevent the water from collecting there. It might be as simple as installing drain holes at the bottom of the flares, or stopping leaks to begin with.

The dual layers make it a tricky repair (also what causes the problem to begin with). Personally, I'd go for patches. Stitch welded, they would look fairly good.

[Chuck Brown]

Thanks as always fellas, thats the sorta direction I was looking for, and once again you came through.

The drain hole solution is probably the best route as well, so with that said, I figure I'll try and push forward this weekend and start by:

A.) Grind down to bare steel to assess where the trouble starts
B.) Make a careful 2-sided incision (one parallel to the body, another perpendicular) to provide 2 welding surface with which to use as a welding surface when it comes time to patch.
C.) Use the removed section as a template guide against the donor FFs

I'll post pics of progress and lyk how this goes. Normally I wouldnt be too worried if I was working on a ride where replacement panels werent so scarce or the surface wasnt such a compound angle.

Again, thanks for the moral support, boys.

Chuck Brown